Couple Of Bottles On A Saturday

The first beers of the night were in Franco Manca, a pizza chain in London. Esther’s sister came to visit from Cardiff so we went down for some dinner. Whilst my goto drink would normally be cider, I’ve had the No Logo cider in there before and I wasn’t really a fan. It reminded me a little of Savanna South African cider which I thought was pretty poor. Anyway, digression as usual.

Along with the lager, they also do a pale ale but personally I think lager goes better with pizza. No Logo lager is made for Franco Manca by Shepherd Neame brewery. It pairs well with the sour dough pizza but is only slightly more flavourful than your standard-fair lagers.

Overall Score: 2/5

Pint No. 8

What? – Goose Island, Matilda

Where? – Challenge HQ, Putney

When? – Saturday 13th January 2018

Back at the flat I cracked open one of my Christmas gifts. Goose Island has become one of the most versatile brewers around with a massive selection on offer. I’m a little ashamed to say that before tonight I’d only tried their IPA.

Matilda is a Vintage Ale brewed in a Belgian style. At 7% it packs a punch and has quite a complex flavour. I really enjoyed this one and paired it with watching the beginning of ‘Friends’ as it’s just been put on Netflix. Perhaps an even less robust story than that is the story of Matilda Goose Island put on their website. They claim they were inspired by the legend of a Countess named Matilda who founded a monastery where the monks brewed beer.